(Xj^&njOt^ 




£.yl 



ctaMT^ 



.r\/\ 



EDDY 




BEE-CULTURE, 



AND 



THE PROTECTIVE BEE-HIVE ; 



GUIDE 



TO A SUCCESSFUL AND PROFITABLE METHOD OF BEE-CULTURE ; THE RESULTS OF 
MANY YEARS' EXPERIENCE AND OBSERVATION IN BEE-KEEPING. 



BY HENRY EDDY, M.D. 

North Bridgewater, Mass., 
INVENTOR OF THE PROTECTIVE BEE-HIVE 

WITH AN INTRODUCTORY NOTICE 

By J. V. C. SMITH, M.D., Mayor of Boston. 




BOSTON: 

PRESS OF DAMRELL & MOORE 
1854. 



^yw 



W>£ 








^. . -^ 




THE 



PROTECTIVE BEE-HIVE, 



BY 



HENRY EDDY, M. D., 

NORTH BRIDGEWATER, MASS. 



EDDY 



ON 



BEE-CULTUKE, 



AND 



THE PROTECTIVE BEE-HIVE; 



GUIDE 



TO A SUCCESSFUL AND PROFITABLE METHOD OF BEE-CULTUKE ; THE RESULTS OF 
XANY YEARS' EXPERIENCE AND OBSERVATION IN BEE-KEEPING. 



BY HENRY EDDY, M.D. 

North Bridgewater, Mass., 
INVENTOR OF THE PROTECTIVE BEE-HIVE 

WITH AN INTRODUCTORY NOTICE 

By J. V. C. SMITH, M.D., Mayor of Boston. 



-*-» -■*-. — 



BOSTON: 

PRESS OF DAMRELL & MOORE. 
1 854. 









Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1854, by 
HENRY EDDY, 

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts 



V 






.. ^ 









fc. 



TO 



JEROME Y. C. SMITH, M. D. 



| in titt IJajior of lostaiu 



BY WHOSE VALUABLE TREATISE ON BEE-CULTURE, I WAS AT FIRST 

LED TO INVESTIGATE THE HABITS AND ECONOMY OF 

THE HONEY BEE, 



THESE P A a E S 



f$ost Respectfully UBefctcatetr. 



PREFACE. 



It is the design of this volume to aid the practical apiarian in 
the minute details of Bee-keeping. In the preparation of it, many 
things have been intentionally omitted which might appropriately have 
been inserted. The author of it has endeavored, in these days of 
exuberant book-making, to keep distinctly in mind the maxim that 
short stories are preferable to long ones. He has aimed to say, upon 
a most interesting and prolific subject, as little upon each particular 
which has passed under consideration, as the nature of the case would 
admit He has perhaps studied brevity in some instances where more 
ample illustrations were demanded. Of two evils he has endeavored 
to choose the least. The concise statements which are made, and the 
brief directions which are given, will be found to be in accordance 
with truth. 

The inexperienced Bee-keeper will find the illustrations and reasons 
as he proceeds to practise in accordance with them. .Results are 
stated, rather than the mode by which those results have been 
obtained. Those who are fond of philosophical research, and wish for 
a complete view of the subject which is here introduced, and have 
leisure to push their investigations far beyond the ability of the mere 



V1U PREFACE. 

practical Bee-keeper, will purchase larger works, which have been 
prepared with a different end in view. Every thing has been care- 
fully excluded from these pages which does not bear directly upon 
practical and profitable results. In the construction of the Protective 
Bee-hive, as in the preparation of this volume, an attempt is made to 
render Bee-keeping, as practised by the author, a simple and profit- 
able business. 

Literary excellence has not been aimed at or scarcely thought of by 
the author, and has not probably been attained. The object of lan- 
guage is to be understood. If he has succeeded in this, he is content. 

It is no part of the author's design to make war upon other systems 
of Bee-management. These have been noticed incidentally only so far 
as seemed to be necessary in pointing out what has appeared to be the 
best method of Bee- culture. 

In a form somejvhat different, the substance of this volume has 
been presented, in connection with ample drawings, specimens of 
comb, &c, before the National Agricultural Society, at their second 
annual meeting in Washington ; before the Washington Horticultural 
Association in the Smithsonian Institute, the Framingham Agricultural 
Association, and other audiences. 



CONTENTS 



PAGE. 

Preface, v ii 

Introductory Notice, . ....ix 

Chap. I. — Attention solicited, 11 

II. — Obstacles to Bee-culture, 12 

III. — Social Organization, 16 

Members of the Family, ......17 

The Queen, 17 

The Worker, ....18 

The Drone, 19 

I V.~ The Materials used in the Hive, 20 

Bee-glue or Propolis, •• « ....... 20 

Wax,. 20 

Honey, 20 

Bee-bread or Pollen, 21 

V.— Bee-house, 22 

VI. — Bee-palaces, .....23 

VII.— Hives, 24 

VIII.— Location, 25 

IX— Ventilation, 26 

X. — Swarming, 28 

XL— Hiving, 29 

XIL— Feeding, 31 

XIIL— The Protective Bee-Hive, 33 

Its History, 33 

Principle of Construction, 35 

Mode of Protection, 35 

Materials, .35 

Making, 35 

Hiving, 36 

Location, • 37 

Memoranda, ..39 



X CONTENTS. 

Summer Management, 40 

Fall Management, 42 

Winter Management, 43 

Spring Management, 43 

Robbing, 44 

Transfer of Bees, 44 

Chap. XIV.— Overstocking, 46 

XV-— Profits, / 47 

XVI.— Claims , •••• 49 

XVII.— -Recapitulation, 50 

XVIII.— Conclusion, 52 

Questions for the Bee-keeper,. .54 

Testimonials, 55 

Advertisement, •. 59 

Lectures, 60 




QUEEX. 





WORKS R. 



DRONK. 



INTRODUCTORY NOTICE. 



It gives me pleasure to find that increased attention is bestowed 
upon the subject of the following pages. Bee-culture, it must be 
admitted, has not received in this country that degree of attention 
which its importance demands. Investigations the most thorough have 
been made in almost every department of rural industry. With us 
agriculture is not what it was half a century since. Science has been 
made tributary to art. Chemistry has been made to lend its aid to the 
agriculturalist. Light has been shed upon almost every topic which is 
connected with a tillage of the soil. The formation of Agricultural 
Associations — discussions — addresses — and the periodical press — 
have each contributed to this end. There has been a great increase in 
the amount of practical knowledge which is possessed by the agricul- 
turalist, and an approximation at least towards the best and most 
desirable results. In these circumstances it is reasonable to expect 
some advance towards the best methods of Bee-management. Yet the 
fact js not to be concealed, that very little has been done, comparatively, 
to extend our knowledge of the peculiar habits and economy of the 
Honey-bee. While Germany is able to report annually the most 
thorough and minute investigations, and the most extended operations 
and consequent profits in the line of Bee-culture, and the existence 
and success of two Bee-Journals which are well sustained, we have to 

confess, that in each of these particulars we are deficient. With the 
2 



X INTRODUCTORY NOTICE. 

exception of a few authors, who have given us the results of their 
experience in Bee-keeping, we occupy the background. With a soil 
equally fertile, or with facilities equally ample for a successful prosecu- 
tion of this enterprise, we have suffered Bee-culture to remain com- 
paratively a neglected topic. The following Treatise, among others of 
American authorship, is evidence that proper Bee-management is 
beginning to assume, in the minds of experienced apiarians at least, 
something like its proper place. When patient and thorough investi- 
gations shall be made and often repeated, by which facts and principles 
shall be established upon a reliable basis, and the periodical press shall 
be employed to disseminate the principles which are thus settled, we 
may be in a condition to rival others who at present are confessedly 
our superiors. Let it be shown upon a basis of facts that Bee- culture 
amply remunerates those who give their attention to it, actually afford- 
ing a larger percentage of profit upon the capital invested and the 
time employed than any other branch of rural eeononrj, and that there 
is very little danger of overstocking the country, (as facts will show,) 
and the day is not far distant when the popular mind will be fully 
awake to the enterprise. Especially, let the Bees be effectually pro- 
tected from the encroachments of the Bee-moth, as is done by the 
author of this treatise — in other words, let a proper and systematic 
method of Bee-management be adopted, such as will be found detailed 
in this volume, and the apiarian will have no occasion to complain that 
he is engaged in an enterprise which does not pay. I have long been 
convinced, from experiments" and observations of my own, that Bee- 
culture as a source of luxury and wealth is at present very imperfectly 
understood ; and it is with the hope that a new impetus may be given 
to it, and currency given also to better views relative to it, that I cheer- 
fully yield to the suggestion of the author to associate, in this brief in- 
troductory notice, my name with his in the good which this volume has 

to accomplish. 

J. V. C. SMITH. 



BEE-CULTURE. 



CHAPTER I 



THE ATTENTION OF DIFFEEENT CLASSES SOLICITED. 

In this volume, I propose to invite attention to a most interesting 
and profitable branch of rural industry. In so doing, I would not be 
understood as calling the attention of agriculturists alone to this subject. 
The impression has too long existed that the cultivator of the soil alone, 
or especially, is concerned in the management of the Honey Bee. 
There are very many individuals in every community as well situated, 
to say the least, as the husbandman, for a successful prosecution of this 
enterprise. It is not an enterprise which requires great, capital or great 
muscular energy, or great extent of territory, as personal possessions. 
Any individual, however limited his resources, who has command of a 
little leisure, may share in the luxury and profits which result from the 
labors of the Honey Bee : and the amount of time required in the 
various operations of Bee-culture is much, less than is generally 
supposed. There are ten months of the year during which Bees may' 
be said to take care of themselves ; that is, the attention which they 
need is very trifling. The aggregate degree of attention which a dozen 
swarms of Bees require during the year is less than a dozen house 
plants, or the single canary bird would necessarily demand. The time 
is at hand when professional men and young persons, and even females 
and aged persons who are much at home, will be among our most 
successful Bee-keepers ; to say nothing of the mechanic, who being 
much at home is peculiarly well situated for giving attention to this 



1 2 BEE-CULTURE. 

enterprise. When the subject shall be properly understood, especially 
when the lesson shall be effectually learned, which some have learned, 
that the Honey Bee can be domesticated or rendered manageable, as 
truly and almost as safely as any other creature which is made for the 
service of man, or as safely as the cow or the horse, Bee-culture will 
be greatly increased. Then it will be regarded in its true light as 
affording ample remuneration to those who enlist in it. The profits 
resulting from a judicious and proper system of Bee-culture may be 
safely estimated at from 100 to 500 per cent, per annum. In this 
statement I give merely the results of my own experience in Bee- 
keeping for a period of twelve years. There is no living creature 
which is subject to the control of man which pays so large a profit upon 
the capital invested and the time employed, as the Honey Bee, when a 
proper system of Bee-culture is adopted. 

It is evident to every experienced apiarian that Bee-culture is carried 
on to a very limited extent in this country, compared with the facilities 
which are afforded for its most successful prosecution. As he looks 
abroad on our cultivated fields, upon our hills and valleys extending 
from Mexico to Canada, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific, something 
like a painful sensation comes over him as he is compelled to witness 
an entire loss of vast quantities of honey on every side, which, without 
injury to any one, might be gathered, if Bees in sufficient numbers were 
set at work under a proper and well regulated system of Bee-culture. 
Here he discovers a vast source of wealth, the smallest fractional part 
of which has scarcely been secured. This state of the case brings to his 
mind most forcibly the obstacles which operate to produce this result. 



CHAPTEE II. 

OBSTACLES TO BEE-CULTUEE. 

The first which I shall name is the want of adequate hioioledge in 
reference to the peculiar habits and economy of the Honey Bee. 

It is not at all surprising that very little should be known relative to 
the nature and operations of Bees, when we consider the circumstances 



OBSTACLES TO BEE-CULTURE. 13 

in -which they have been placed, or the mode of culture which has been 
adopted. The Bee-hive has been, to a great extent, a dark apartment. 
There are commendable exceptions to this, but they are few and far 
between. By far the great majority of hives now in use are as dark 
and as far removed from the inspection of the Bee-keeper, as the cave 
in which the hyena dwells. Travel in almost any direction and 
enumerate the hives which are thus dark, and at the same time mark 
those which are so constructed as to give the keeper even a tolerable 
view of the interior, and you will find the proportion of the latter 
compared with the former extremely small. In many instances those 
which pretend to give us a view of the interior are so ill adapted to this 
purpose as only to tantalize our earnest search after further light and 
knowledge. Add to this darkness of the hive another fact, viz. : that a 
majority of Bee-keepers read very little and reflect less, and experiment 
less upon their Bees, and you have a solution of this matter, or can 
understand why it is that such erroneous views are extensively preva- 
lent, and absolute ignorance exists where enlightened views ought to be 
entertained. I have often been surprised at the degree of ignorance 
which prevails among persons who have been Bee-keepers for years. 
Some of them know as little respecting their peculiar habits as if they 
had never kept them. In these circumstances a very serious obstacle 
exists to the adoption of any enlightened and successful system of Bee- 
culture, and this obstacle is not to be removed except by an application 
to the appropriate remedy or remedies. Hives are to be differently 
constructed. Information is to be sought. Experiments are to be made. 
In other words, a different mode of Bee-culture is to be adopted. Such 
a result can be anticipted only in connection with adequate knowledge 
in reference to Beeology. 

Another obstacle to Bee-culture consists in the destruction of the 
Bees by the Bee-keeper. 

This cruel and barbarous custom still prevails to a greater or less ex- 
tent in almost every portion of the country. It necessarily prevents 
the legitimate and natural increase of colonies, and limits greatly the 
profits which might otherwise be derived from them. This has been 
done under the mistaken apprehension that this procedure becomes 
necessary in order to secure the avails of their labor. This policy is 
about as wise as it would be for the poultry-keeper to destroy his fowls 
in order to get possession of the eggs which are found within ; or it 



14 BEE-CULTURE. 

reminds one of the woman who, as the Latin fable relates, had in her 
possession a hen, which laid daily a golden egg, and being somewhat 
avaricious in her tendency, killed the hen, hoping to come into posses- 
sion of all the golden eggs at once. The case is this : in most instances 
there is a destruction of Bees to the value of $5.00 in order to secure 
three or four dollars' worth of honey. In many instances the ratio of 
profit is much less than this, and it is profit the backward way. This 
mode of procedure does not pertain to any successful system of Bee- 
culture. How very different the result, in a series of years, when all 
the increase is kept alive and kept at work. 

Another obstacle to Bee-culture is found in the reluctance of very 
many persons to engage in the enterprise. 

This reluctance has its origin in fear. It arises from the fact that Bees 
are furnished with a little formidable weapon of defence, whose sharp 
point is much dreaded by those who are very imperfectly acquainted with 
them, but very little dreaded by the experienced apiarian. He knows 
that it is merely a weapon of defence, and not one which is used in sport. 
It is employed only in desperate cases, or those which are considered 
desperate, in which they are willing to die in the conflict. The Bee 
when it stings leaves its sting in the wound, and the extremity of the 
abdomen is torn off with it, and he dies soon after. The experienced 
apiarian gives his Bees to understand early, by very cautious and gentle 
management at first, that they are not to be harmed by any of his 
manipulations. In other words, his Bees soon become accustomed to 
his presence, and are not annoyed by it, and are not tempted to use 
upon him their weapon of defence. Hence his fears are at an end. 
He finds his Bees are domesticated or rendered manageable in the same 
way and upon the same principle as any other creature which is subject 
to his control, viz. : by familiarity, gently conducted at first, and often 
repeated, until they are no longer strangers, and there is no longer any 
trouble. 

Another obstacle to Bee-culture in addition to those already named, 
and the most serious one which is known to exist, is found in the fact 
that Bees often fall a prey to their enemies. 

Bees are exposed to a variety of enemies in the same manner as 
a traveller, who, returning from the mines richly laden with the fruits 
of his toil, finds his pathway beset by those who are intent upon spoil, 
and who are ready to sacrifice his life in order to obtain it. The load 



OBSTACLES TO BEE-CULTURE. 15 

of sweet which they carry witli them presents a temptation too strong 
to be resisted by the honey-loving tribes which beset their path. Birds 
and toads and fowls lie in wait for them and capture great numbers of 
them during the working season. The Bee that goes forth early to his 
task, anxious to improve " each shining hour," knows not that it is at 
the peril of his life, or that he is to exchange his " Sweet Home" for a 
place in the stomach of the greedy bird. These and other enemies of 
a similar character which subsist in part upon Bees, are continually 
making havoc with them as they go abroad in quest of stores ; but the 
mischief occasioned in this way is made up by the constant hatching 
which takes place in the hive during the season of their greatest activity 
and greatest exposure to incidents of this rkind. They will increase, 
and often thrive greatly, notwithstanding such drawbacks upon their 
prosperity. These and similar casualties are trivial compared with 
" storming the lion in his den," or compared with the havoc made upon 
their " Sweet Home " by another pestiferous and fatal enemy yet to be 
named. I mean the Bee-moth. The perfectly developed Bee-moth 
is the greyish miller which flits about the lamp or candle on a summer's 
evening, and occasionally dives into it, because dazzled by its brightness. 
Like the owl, it is blind or nearly so during the day, and moves about 
at twilight. It is at this period that the female, which is much larger 
than the male, is seen about the hive, seeking to perform her deeds of 
darkness. If there are cracks or crevices or joints about the hive which 
have opened by the dry weather, she has all the opportunity to operate 
which she desires. Here she deposits her eggs. She is prompted by 
instinct to leave them where they will hatch, and where nourishment 
is at hand for the sustenance of her young. Hence she never 
deposits them at a distance from the hive. A necessary condition 
seems to be that either wax or warmth, or both, must exist at those 
points which she selects for this purpose. The animal heat naturally 
emanating from the Bees, and which escapes through the joints and 
crevices of most of the hives which are used, is sufficient for hatching 
purposes. When hatched, the young moth finds his nourishment in 
these joints and crevices, which has been placed there by the Bees in 
their attempts to render the hive tight. Upon this he subsists until he 
can do better, or until he eats his way through this paste work of wax 
and Bee-glue and gains access to the interior of the hive. It is in this 
way chiefly that the Bee-moth performs his work of destruction. Rarely 



16 BEE-CULTURE, 

does he face the enemy and pass " vi et armis" directly into the hive, inas- 
much as the Bee-entrance is guarded by sentinels, whose business it is to 
demand a passport of all before they step upon forbidden ground. Could 
I be the owner of all the Bees (and they in good condition) which have 
been destroyed in this country by the Bee-moth, during the twenty 
years which are past, I should desire no greater fortune, or ask no 
further tribute from the mines of California. But a way has been de- 
vised, which I shall hereafter point out, to avoid all this mischief and 
ruin, and this device will no doubt constitute a new era in the history 
of Bee-culture. 



CHAPTER III. 

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION. 

Bees are never known to live in a solitary state. They proceed j 

upon the principle that it is not good for them to be alone. In this 
respect they differ widely in their habits from the wasp, the hornet and 
various kinds of flies. There is a reason for this which I do not recol- 
lect to have seen stated. The material which is used in the construc- 
tion of their nests or cells, is different from that which is employed for 
the same purpose, by solitary insects, and this material cannot be used 
except at a high degree of temperature. The instruments to be em- 
ployed in comb-building, are small, and the wax must be softened, in 
order that it may be spread. A solitary Bee cannot come and deposit 
his quantum of wax, and thus enlarge the cell. The degree of warmth 
which is necessary for comb-building, is produced by the clustering 
together of the Bees. Their animal heat, when they collect together 
in a mass, is sufficient for this purpose. Hence we are able to under- 
stand why it is they cluster very compactly together, and remain quiet 
for the most part for several days after swarming, when the foundations 
are to be laid, and comb is to be built in their new home. The comb 
is built the most rapidly during the night, when all are at home, be- 
cause the temperature is then the highest, or the animal heat is the 
greatest. It is observed that the temperature of the hive is at a higher 
point during the season of comb-building, than at any other'time. The 



SOCIAL ORGANIZATION. 17 

naked hand placed upon the glass will be sufficient to convince any one 
of the fact, without the aid of a thermometer. They have the power 
of increasing or concentrating their own animal heat whenever it is ne- 
cessary for the purposes just specified. 

MEMBERS OF THE FAMILY. 

A colony or swarm of Bees is composed of the Queen, the Worker, 
and the Drone. Each has distinct offices to fulfil, and all are impor- 
tant in their bearing upon the welfare of the society, or body politic 
which they form. They never revolt. They remain true to their or- 
ganization, until death separates them. 




THE QUEEN. 

The Queen is the mother of the whole family of which she by instinct 
and by common consent, is constituted the head. She is distinguished 
from the other Bees both by her shape, color, and size. She is larger every 
way than the common worker, and longer even than the drone, and 
different in her proportions from either. The rings of the abdomen 
are less fully developed, or less visible. She has a more delicate structure 
than the drone, is more wasp-like in her appearance, with an abdomen 
more nicely tapered, or pointed at its extremity. She is of a darker 
color upon the back, especially upon the back part of the abdomen, 
than either the the worker or drone. Upon the lower side of the ab- 
domen she presents a yellowish, or semi-orange appearance. Her 
wings, when compared with those of the worker or drone, are wider, 
stouter, and shorter, in proportion to the length of her body. She is 
seldom on the wing, and is seldom seen except at the time of swarming, 
and when she comes forth in the open air to be impregnated by the 
males. She lays all the eggs from which the increase of the colony 
2* 



18 BEE-CULTURE. 

proceeds. The number of eggs which she deposits in the cells during 
a single season is* truly astonishing, amounting to hundreds and even 
thousands in a single day, as may be "witnessed by those who use ob- 
servatory hives. 




THE WORKER. 

The workers are so called because they perform all the labor of the 
colony. They seem to have no other propensity except to labor in 
various ways and to accumulate stores for the subsistence of the family 
and such is their propensity in this direction that they often accumu- 
late much more than is found needful for their own supplies, and are 
able and, I doubt not, are willing to furnish a liberal quantum of honey 
to their keeper to defray their necessary expenses, such as house-rent 
and the time which is bestowed upon them. They uniformly pay better 
for a good tenement than for a poor one. They like to work to advan- 
tage, and never like to be in debt, and if they are, it is not so much their 
fault as that of the keeper, who fails to place them in favorable circum- 
stances, in which they can give full scope to their natural instincts. 
Their industry is proverbial. Some are employed during the working 
season as sentinels, some in comb-building, some in gathering and 
storing up honey, some in nursing or feeding the young, some in 
pasting over, mason like, the crevices and joints of the hive, some in 
removing from the hive offending substances, and others, like a kind 
of body guard, seem to bestow special attention upon the queen. 
Whether the principle of the division of labor is strictly adhered to by 
them, or separate classes of Bees perform constantly the same kind of 
labor, or whether they are employed alternately or promiscuously in 
different departments cf labor, is a point which is not satisfactorily 
settled by any observations or experiments which have hitherto been 
made. Their number varies in different swarms, from twelve to forty 
thousand, according to circumstances, the size of the hive or the 
degree of prosperity which they enjoy. They are styled neuters, but 



SOCIAL ORGANIZATION. 19 

are really females of a dwarfish size. They are imperfectly developed 
in size, and their female organs and propensities are in like manner 
imperfectly developed, except in some few instances. In consequence 
of a more perfect development than is usual, they have been known to 
lay drone eggs. That they are really females and not mongrels is 
proved by the fact that when a queen is lost or removed from the hive 
in the hatching season, a newly laid worker egg is taken from the cell 
in which it has been deposited and transferred into a queen cell, which 
is prepared for the purpose, and by a peculiar feed called royal jelly it 
becomes a perfectly developed qaeen or mother. 




THE DRONE. 

The drone, like the queen and worker, is appropriately named. He 
is larger, stouter and more bulky than the worker, and not so long as 
the queen. The drones are the only males in the hive. They are 
hatched from April to July, and usually number from three to four 
hundred in a single colony. They are literally " gentlemen of leisure." 
They add nothing to the stores of the family, perform no labor, and do 
not even gather their own food, but live on the labors of others. They 
seem designed merely for propagation. Their days are very limited. 
When the work of impregnating the queen is performed for the 
following season, they are destroyed by the workers, who seem intent 
on carrying out the principle that he that will not work shall not eat. 
This general slaughter of drones usually takes place during the month 
of August, sometimes a little earlier. Rarely do they live longer than 
four months. None of them are allowed to survive the winter. 



CHAPTER IV. 
THE MATERIALS USED IN THE HIVE. 

BEE GLUE OR PROPOLIS. 

There is a great disposition among Bees to coat over every part of 
the interior of the hive. This is done chiefly by what is called Bee 
Glue. This is not a secretion from the Bee, as some have supposed. 
It is a substance which is gathered or scraped from the bark and leaves 
of trees. It is used as a kind of cement in attaching the comb to the 
hive, and in closing up the joints and crevices of the hive, and for 
general coating purposes. When dry it is much stiffer and harder than 
the wax of which the comb is built, and well adapted to the purpose for 
which it is employed. 

WAX. 

This is a secretion from the Bee, which exudes from the body like a 
thick sort of perspiration, between the rings of the abdomen, which 
seem to be connected by so many joints or hinges. This is employed 
in the construction of the comb. As the instruments are very small 
which are used by the Bees, the wax must be very warm or soft in 
order to be wrought by them. Here we see why a small swarm of Bees 
never prosper in a very large hive. Not because they are discouraged 
by the extent of space to be filled, but because they are unable by clus- 
tering together to get up (" steam") a sufficient degree of animal heat 
in order to mould the wax. 

HONEY. 

This is the proper and only food of the mature Bees at all seasons of 
the year. The queen, the drone and the worker subsist upon it. It is 
collected from a very great variety of blossoms. I shall not attempt 
to enumerate all the sources from which it is gathered. Early in 
spring the Bees work upon the willows and alders which are found in 
our swamps, more for the pollen which is found upon them than for the 



MATERIALS USED IN THE HIVE. 21 

quantity of honey which they contain. Next they resort to the cherry- 
tree, the pear-tree, and the apple-tree blossoms : subsequently to the 
white clover. This usually furnishes the greatest supply of honey, 
more, I am inclined to think, taking one season with another, than all 
other things in the climate of New England. They rarely, if ever, 
work upon red clover, from the fact that their proboscis is not of 
sufficient length to reach the honey which is contained in it. Later in 
the season they resort to fields of buckwheat. This furnishes honey 
in considerable quantities, but it is inferior in quality and flavor to that 
which is gathered from the white clover. It however answers well for 
their winter stores. It helps many late swarms to survive the winter* 
Buckwheat should always be sown in the vicinity where Bees are kept. 
The idea is extensively prevalent that Bees have the power in some 
way to manufacture honey. This is an error. They have no labora- 
tory for this purpose, and no peculiar process by which the work is 
done. If it were so they would bring all the materials which they 
employ to a given standard ; but such is not the fact. Apple-tree 
blossom honey is one thing, white clover honey is another, buckwheat 
honey is another, Southern or Cuba honey, which is gathered from the 
sugar plantations, is quite another, and sugar syrup, which is sometimes 
fed to Bees and is transferred by them, the liquid part of which at 
length evaporates and leaves the sugar in a candied state in the cell 
(thus spoiling the cells) is still another. Bees are merely gatherers of 
honey, which various blossoms spontaneously produce. The honey is 
their food and they gather it. They will transfer to their cells any 
kind of sweet which you choose to give them, and large quantities of it, 
but no chemical change takes place in the article while the Bees have 
it in their possession, or during the act of transportation. In one 
minute, and frequently in less time than this, the material which is 
gathered is deposited in the cell, and it is substantially the same thing 
after the transportation as before. But more of this in another place. 

BEE-BREAD OR POLLEN. 

This is conveyed to the hive from various flowers upon the thighs of 
the Bees, and is often stored up in considerable quantities beyond what 
is needful for present use. There has been much diversity of opinion 
as to the particular use which is made of this article. It is at length 
settled by satisfactory experiments that the only use which is made of 



22 BEE-CULTURE. 

it, is in feeding or rearing their young while in the larvae or worm 
state ; that what is stored up is for use early in the spring, when the 
hatching of the young commences, before fresh pollen can be gathered 
abroad. Mature Bees do not subsist upon it, but often die of starvation 
with a plenty of it in the hive. 



CHAPTER V. 

BEE-HOUSE. 
The Bee-house which was once thought to be essential to Bee-cul- 
ture, is found in various respects to operate unfavorably ; and all the 
advantages which it affords can be secured much better in some other 
way. Bees should never be exposed to the direct rays of the sun, ex- 
cept in the morning and at evening. The intense heat of the sun often 
causes them to lie in a cluster upon the outside of the hive or to melt 
down — a circumstance which proves fatal to them. The Bee-house, if 
properly constructed, may afford protection from the injurious and 
excessive heat of the sun ; but as it is" usually constructed it is too 
narrow even for this. Being open on one side, as it usually is, with a 
southern exposure, the sun acts with all its intensity upon the Bees (or 
hive) in spite of the Bee-house. The Bee-house attracts the sun in 
winter, and so much warmth is occasioned that the Bees are induced to 
leave the hive and are soon chilled. They fall upon the snow, and, 
being unable to rise, soon die. Great numbers are lost from this cause 
alone, when they would have remained in the hive had it not been for 
the accumulated and reflected heat of the sun occasioned by the 
presence of the Bee-house. Its protection in winter against the cold 
the Bees do not need. It is impossible to freeze them in our climate, 
unless the swarm is quite small : in that case the probability is they will 
perish from some other cause. Those swarms which lie the most 
dormant in winter (that is, occupy the coldest place), eat the least, 
come out brightest in the spring, and increase and prosper most during 
the following summer. The kind of protection from the excessive heat 
of the sun which the Bees need, will be spoken of when I come to treat 
of the Bee-hive. The Bee-house furnishes the best kind of protection 



BEE-PALACES. 23 

for ants, millers, bugs, worms and every kind of insect which delights 
to collect in or about a Bee-hive. Here they find convenient lodging 
places. They are attracted thither by the scent or delicious contents of 
the hive, and they often collect there in great numbers. The miller 
especially, from which the Bee-moth proceeds, — the greatest enemy 
against which the Bees have to contend, and which has made such 
havoc with many swarms throughout New England, — may usually be 
found lurking or secreted during the day about the roof or platform 
upon which the Bees stand, ready to go forth at night, as it is accustom- 
ed to do, to perform its work of destruction by laying its eggs in or 
about the hive. Many swarms have no doubt been lost which might 
have lived and done well, had it not been for the depredations of those 
insects which collect in and about the Bee-house. Ordinarily it is a 
" cage of all manner of unclean birds." It should therefore be dispensed 
with entirely. There is a more excellent way. The open air is far 
preferable. This will appear when we come to speak particularly of 
the Bee-hive. 



CHAPTER VI. 



BEE-PALACES. 



It has been a favorite device with many to place Bees in a dark 
room prepared for them in the attic or some out-building, with a view 
to prevent them from swarming, where they may work " ad libitum." 
The merits of this plan will be best understood when we come to speak 
of the theory of swarming and non-swarming. Bees placed in these 
circumstances will make a large quantity of comb, and deposit stores 
to a considerable amount, and increase in numbers to a certain extent 
until at length they become stationary, then usually decline, and after 
a certain period become extinct. The objection to this arrangement 
is, 1. That it prevents the natural increase and multiplication of 
colonies, in which a part of the Bee-keeper's profit consists. 2. The 
Bees are more exposed in these circumstances to the ravages of the 
Bee-moth and other insects. 3. The surplus honey is not in the most 
neat and salable condition. 4. The cutting and breaking of the comb, 



24 BEE-CULTURE. 

"which becomes necessary, discourages the Bees. 5. In this way the 
Bee-keeper is not remunerated for his trouble. 6. The Bees are greatly 
enraged, and their keeper greatly annoyed whenever honey is obtained. 
7. If no other mode of culture should be adopted our Bees would become 
extinct. Each of these points is capable of a very lucid and satisfactory 
demonstration, but it is not consistent with the design of this manual 
to go into the rationale of every particular which is stated. I give 
results which have been put to the test of experiment, and may be 
so tested again. No individual of large experience and thorough 
knowledge of Bee-culture will adopt or continue this method of Bee 
management. 



CHAPTEK VII 



HIVES. 



Very few Bee-keepers have felt adequately the importance of con- 
structing a good hive. I refer at present not so much to the plan of 
construction as to the materials used and the workmanship which has 
been employed. Too often any kind of box which would contain a 
hen and chickens (and perhaps very suitable for that purpose) has 
been used for a Bee-hive. In behalf of the Bees I utterly protest 
against all such " fixings." The idea that anything in which Bees will 
remain and labor will answer for a Bee-hive, is utterly futile and ruin- 
ous in its bearing upon Bee-culture. A Bee -hive requires the best 
stock and the best workmanship which it is possible to obtain. It 
should be made for exposure to the weather so as to constitute hive 
and house. A Bee-house is to be entirely dispensed with, for reasons 
already assigned. It should be water-proof and air-tight. Every joint 
which communicates with the interior of the hive should be protected 
by tongue and groove or their equivalents. No chink or crack which 
allows the warmth of the hive or the animal heat of the Bees to escape 
is to be tolerated for a moment, unless we intend to give the Bee-moth 
possession of the interior by allowing it to deposit its eggs in these 
crevices, where they will hatch and multiply until they outnumber and 
destroy the Bees, as they often do. The joint which usually exists 



LOCATION. 95 

about the base of the hive is to be protected as effectually and as thor- 
oughly as any upright joint. I know of but one hive which is con- 
structed in this thorough manner, and I know of but one hive which 
affords any real protection against the encroachments of the Bee-moth. 
This hive will be spoken of in the sequel. This will be found, in its 
practical results, to be a very different thing from the construction of a 
moth-cage, trap, drawer, or " hot-house," as if the great object of the 
Bee-keeper was to raise such creatures for market, or was extremely 
anxious to furnish them a lurking place and a snug warm nest, or was 
desirous to induce them to stay about his apiary ; and a very different 
thing from placing a hive over a wire screen (with a moth drawer 
beneath!), which wire net- work furnishes all the opportunity for the 
deposit of eggs which the Bee-moth could desire. All such " fixings," 
which furnish a place for the deposit and hatching of eggs, must gratify 
the Bee-moth exceedingly. It could ask or desire nothing better, and 
if it had the power I think it would it be disposed to remunerate the 
Bee-keeper amply for such an arrangement. I shall not in this place 
go into the merit or demerit of different plans of construction, but 
would say that whatever particular plan is adopted, the hive should be 
constructed in the thorough manner which has been alluded to above. 



CHAPTER VIII 



LOCATION. 



A Bee-hive should never be exposed to the direct rays of the sun 
during the summer season, and in the winter it is to a certain extent 
injurious, especially if the hive is unpainted or is of a dark color. A 
dark-colored hive, if it is painted, or one which is the color of the 
wood, absorbs the rays of the sun and causes too much heat in the 
hive. The high temperature which is thus produced causes the Bees 
to cluster upon the outside of the hive in summer, and not unfrequently 
results in what is called " melting down," which is nothing more nor 
less than the soft state of the wax or comb, which falls by its own weight 
when the cells are filled with honey. A Bee-hive should be placed in 
the open air and in the shade. The best place is under the south half 



26 BEE-CULTURE. 

of a tree, where, from 9 o'clock A. M. until 4 o'clock P. M., it will be 
shaded or protected from the direct rays of the sun. There it should 
remain during the entire year. Nothing will be gained by removing 
the hive to the attic, the cellar, or a dark room in winter. I have 
tried all these experiments to my entire satisfaction. More Bees will 
be lost by such a transfer than by permitting them to remain in the 
open air. 



CHAPTER IX. 



VENTILATION. 



Proper ventilation is highly important to the welfare and prosperity 
of the Bees. The amount of fresh air which they need at all times is 
not great ; but what they need must be had, or they must suffer the ill 
consequences. The precise extent to which ventilation is to be carried 
is determined very much by circumstances. If the Bees occupy a very 
warm position they will need much more thorough ventilation than if 
they are placed in different circumstances, or have a cool and shady 
place. They need less air, as a general thing, in summer than in 
winter. Their eggs hatch the most readily, and their young grow the 
most rapidly, when a high degree of temperature exists in the hive. 
When the temperature of the hive is too great, they always indicate the 
fact by clustering upon the outside of the hive. Then a liberal amount 
of fresh air should at once be given them, and every hive should be 
so constructed that this can easily and readily be done. Bees should 
never be allowed to establish the habit of " lying out," as it is called, a 
habit which they rarely if ever do form in the climate of New England, 
if they are properly located and have sufficient ventilation. More Bees 
are lost or destroyed for the want of proper ventilation in winter than 
in summer. At the season of the greatest heat many of them are 
abroad in the fields during the day, and at night they need more 
warmth and less air than is usually supposed, in order that they may 
spread wax readily or build comb with rapidity. In winter the Bees 
are all at home. The interior of the hive is warm, the exterior is cold* 
The consequence is that moisture is deposited (as upon our windows in 



VENTILATION. 2 7 

frosty weather) upon the inner "walls of the hive. This moisture con- 
geals and forms a lining of frost and ice upon the inner surface of the 
hive. This moisture extends to the comb, especially when the weather 
moderates and the ice melts. The comb, in consequence of the moist- 
ure, turns very black, and not unfrequently mildews, and a bad odor is 
generated in the hive. In this damp atmosphere, being walled in by a 
coating of ice, the Bees are effectually chilled, and fall upon the bottom 
of the hive to rise no more. This usually occurs not in the coldest 
weather, while the Bees cluster in the centre of the hive, but when the 
weather becomes warmer and the Bees begin to move, and come in 
contact with the ice while it is melting. A fact illustrative of this 
occurred not many days since — (Jan. 1854). I have one swarm of 
Bees in a common box hive which cannot be ventilated. After a period 
of severe cold a thaw commenced, and my Bees began to move and 
some of them to leave the hive. At this time, about 10 o'clock A. M., 
I passed around to examine and clear off the bottoms of my hives. I 
found little or no apparent moisture and no dead Bees worth naming 
in any of the hives, except in the one just named. Here I found a 
teacupful of dead Bees on the bottom of the hive. I removed them. 
Before night I visited the hive again, and found about the same quan- 
tity of dead Bees as before, in the same place, near the south side of the 
hive. I was led to inquire why so many should fall in a warm day and 
at one part of the hive. I examined for the cause, and found a thick 
layer of ice upon that side of the hive, which was then in the process 
of melting. I was satisfied as to the cause. They began to move, and 
came in contact with an " iceberg," and were benumbed. These Bees 
I " took up for dead," and carried them to my sitting-room, with a view 
to perform some microscopic observations. While engaged in those 
observations, I found that in consequence of the warmth of the room 
some of the dead were coming to life. Some of them so far recovered 
as to take a repast of honey which I gave them. All this occurred in 
a warm day, with ice or moisture deposited and frozen on that side of 
the hive where the injury was experienced. Can any one doubt, in 
the circumstances, as to the cause which operated for the destruction of 
the Bees ? Bees are seldom, if ever, destroyed by cold alone. They 
often die of cold and moisture combined. Bees have been known to 
survive a New England winter suspended in the open air, with no 
bottom whatever to the hive. This shows that they will endure a great 



28 BEE-CULTURE. 

degree of cold. I do not believe it is possible to freeze them in ordinary 
circumstances, if the hive is sufficiently ventilated. 



CHAPTEE X. 

SWAKMING. 

Divers opinions have been entertained relative to the theory and 
expediency of swarming, and these different opinions have led to very 
different methods of Bee-management. One virtually believing that 
the propensity of the Bee to swarm, should not be gratified, or that the 
Creator (thus impeaching His wisdom,) has given to them a wrong bias, 
has devised some method to interrupt or prevent this " wild freak of 
nature." Another, fearing that the Bees (poor ignorant creatures) do 
not understand the best method of conducting this process, or that they 
will mistake the best time of attending to the matter, has undertaken to 
hasten the process by some " hot bed " arrangement, or volunteered 
to give them a few elementary lessons, relative to a matter which he 
understands [query] much better than they. In the view of one, the 
Bees swarm too often. In the view of the other, they do not swarm 
often enough. Both of these cannot be right, perhaps neither of them. 
I take the liberty here to suggest, that it is barely possible the Bees 
understand the thing, and their Creator also, nearly as well as those 
who set themselves up as teachers in this matter : the first or non-swarm- 
ing plan, is about as wise and profitable as it would be for a dairy-man 
to prevent the natural increase of his stock, by keeping on his farm 
perpetually, a parcel of farrow cows. The other, or artificial swarming, 
is about as wise and salutary an interference, as it would be for a 
boy to catch the old hen and squeeze her because she does not lay soon 
enough. There has been too much officious meddling in this matter. 
Between these opposite extremes, or with Scylla on the one hand, and 
Charybdis on the other, we find the Bees occupying the golden mean, 
where truth and safety dwell, confident, it would seem, in the position 
which they have taken, unchanged in this indomitable propensity, and 
intent upon giving to their keeper a " windfall," as soon as they are 



HIVING. 20 

able with all their industry to furnish it to him. Swarming is a natural 
process. It cannot, to any great extent, be interfered -with, and the 
results prove permanently beneficial to the Bee-keeper. The theory 
of swarming is this. The Queen lays eggs enough ordinarily, in a com- 
mon sized hive, during the hatching season, to make up for the losses 
which the swarm sustains in various ways, and to increase the number of 
Bees to such an extent, that a colony can be spared or sent off, which shall 
constitute a new organization. If the hive is double the ordinary size, 
and the swarm which occupies it is double also, its losses at the same 
time are double. If the hive is treble the ordinary size, and the swarm 
is trebled also, its losses are treble. The Queen lays just about eggs 
enough during the season, to make up for the losses which are sustained 
by a swarm which is treble the ordinary size. There is no increase in 
numbers beyond the wants of the household. No colony is sent off, 
because none can be spared. They remain stationary for a time, or 
from year to year, although strong and vigorous. At length the Queen 
becomes less fertile as she advances in age. Fewer Bees are raised. 
Their losses are not made good by the increase. They gradually di- 
minish in numbers, dwindle and die. Bees are to be placed in a hive 
of suitable dimensions, which contains about one cubic foot, with an 
arrangement for the deposit of surplus honey, where full scope is given 
to their swarming propensities, if the keeper is to receive from them the 
greatest profits which they are capable of furnishing. The Old Queen 
leaves the hive with the first swarm, ordinarily before the young one is 
hatched, yet about the time she is hatched. 



CHAPTER XI. 



HIVING. 



The Bee-keeper, as a preparation for hiving his Bees, should walk 
around among them while they are in the act of swarming. As a conse- 
quence his presence will be more acceptable to them when he comes to 
handle them for the purpose of putting them into the hive. During the 
whole time he should move with the utmost gentleness and deliberation. 



30 BEE-CULTURE. 

His moderation should be known to the Bees. He should make no 
sudden or violent motions, which may serve to enrage them. The hive 
may be set over them, after they have been placed (with the limb upon 
which they have clustered) upon a cloth which is spread upon the 
ground, or they may be shaken or jarred from the limb into the hive 
when inverted, or they may be brushed into the hive gently, by a soft 
wing or dust brush, as circumstances may dictate. When Bees are 
put into a hive inverted, it should be turned back very gently or slowly, 
lest the Bees should be removed or poured out. Always place the 
hive in the shade, or protect it from the direct rays of the sun, while 
the Bees are taking possession of it. About sunset remove it to the place 
where it is to stand permanently. 



CHAPTER XII 



FEEDING. 



The theory of feeding Bees on a large scale has had its day. It has 
presented splendid results for a time, and resulted at length in splendid 
failures. Cheap honey, or a composition has been used, and the 
Bees have been fed freely, under the impression that whatever 
they stored in their cells must of course be honey of the first 
quality. I would ask why Cuba or Southern honey is not made of 
the first quality when it is stored up for the first time in Cuba or 
Florida, if Bees have the power of converting an inferior article into 
one of superior quality. The true reason is that much of this so-called 
honey is taken from the sugar plantations, or from flowers which do 
not furnish the best honey. And the second transportation, although 
done by " Yankee " Bees, does not produce any chemical change in the 
article which is fed. Honey is gathered, not made by the Bees. Those 
who purchase in market Cuba honey which is packed up in " Yankee " 
boxes, do not get the best end of the bargain. They have yet to learn 
that the packing or transportation does not make it the fine flavored 
and wholesome article which is found in white clover upon all our hills 
in New England. The feeding of Bees on a large scale, or with a view to 
secure larger quantities of surplus honey, operates unfavorably upon 



FEEDING. 31 

the Bees in a variety of ways, and the principal objections to it are the 
following : 1. There is no profit in it. No man gets the quantity of 
honey which he feeds. 2. It prevents the Bees from going abroad to 
gather honey from the fields. 3. If the Bees are fed liberally late in the 
fall and early in the spring, there will be very few empty cells in which 
to rear young Bees. 4. It is deceptive, because a cheap and inferior 
article is sold for one of superior quality. 5. It results, in the process 
of time, in the extinction of the Bees. The feeding of Bees may be 
practised with advantage whenever they are not amply supplied with 
winter stores, a thing which happens to late swarms and to those from 
which large quantities of honey have been taken. For this purpose a 
cheap article may be used to help them through the winter. It may be 
desirable to take from the Bees all the white clover honey which can 
be obtained in boxes with a view to supply the Bees with a cheaper 
article. 



32 



BEE-CULTURE. 




THE 



PROTECTIVE BEE-HIVE, 



BY 



HENRY EDDY, M. D., 

NORTH BRIDGEWATER, MASS. 



\i 



4 



CHAPTER XIII. 
THE PEOTECTIVE BEE-HIVE. . "V 

ITS HISTORY. 

The history of the Protective Bee-hive is very simple, f Several 
years since its inventor found trouble from the Bee-moth. He tried a 
variety of hives which professed to remedy the trouble, but found the 
remedies served to increase rather than diminish the trouble, because 
additional lodging and hatching places were furnished to th£ Bee-moth. 
He was led in these circumstances to try various expedients of his own 
to remedy the evil, some of which succeeded in part, while others failed. 
By adding one improvement after another, as they were seen to be neces- 
sary, he found himself in the possession of a hive which answers the 
purpose for which it is used — a hive, simple in its construction and suc- 
cessful in its operation. Circumstances, therefore, or the necessities of 
the case, called it into existence. 

A brief notice of it first appeared in the Boston Cultivator, on the 
4th of June, 1853. Since that time the subscriber has received a 
variety of letters in reference to it ; some containing orders for it, — 
others making inquiries relative to it, — others containing recommen- 
dations from those who have used it, and are ready to speak of its 
advantages. It has attracted much greater attention from Bee-keepers 
than was anticipated ; and in every instance, so far as it can be 
learned, has received their decided approval. This could not have 
been anticipated, especially as Hives possessing considerable merit were 
already before the public. The subscriber is in the condition of Mrs. 
Stowe, who presents a truthful story, and finds to her surprise that her 
Uncle Tom receives a world-wide attention. This can be accounted 
for only by supposing that it is the tiling which is needed, or the thing 
which is well adapted to Bee-culture. Of this he has long been con- 
vinced, but he could not anticipate that experienced Bee-keepers 
would universally agree with him as they have done, so far as they 
have had opportunity to examine and use it. He has labored for many 
years to construct a Hive for his own use'which should (jive him satisfac- 

3 



34 BEE-CULTURE. 

tion. Nothing has been farther from his mind than the preparation of 
a Hive for public use. Now that he has constructed a Hive which 
satisfies himself, he finds that others wish to avail themselves of its 
advantages, and this leads him to present to the public, more fully than 
has hitherto be done, some of its leading characteristics : 

1. This Hive furnishes, as its name indicates, protection against the 
encroachments of the Bee-moth. This is effected in a manner, and 
upon a principle entirely new. No cage, trap, or decoy, is constructed 
for the Bee-moth. In a peculiar manner the animal heat naturally 
emanating from the Bees is intercepted, and in this way the deposit and 
hatching of the eggs of the miller are prevented. As to the real value 
of this arrangement or protection, no comments are needed. 2. It is 
easily ventilated in summer and winter. 3. It provides for the removal 
and deposit of surplus honey without a destruction of the Bees. 4. The 
work and condition of the Bees can be readily inspected. 5. It is 
a Hive of very great durability. 6. It prevents the Bees from cluster- 
ing upon the outside of the Hive. 7. In it Bees., are fed without 
inviting robbers from other Hives. 8. It affords ample room to prevent 
the Bees from swarming, when required. 9. It is easily cleared of dead 
Bees and every other offending substance. 10. This Hive is made for 
exposure to the weather, answering the purpose of hive and house, and 
on this account is the cheapest hive which can be used. 1 1. It dispenses 
with a Bee-house which affords a shelter for all kinds of insects. Its 
location is in the open air and shade, as represented above. 1 2. Bees 
are easily and safely transferred from the ordinary Box-hive to this. 

Such are some of its most important characteristics. These are given 
that individuals at a distance may form some idea of its utility. As to 
its practical operation, some idea may be gained from the following 
statement of facts. Two years ago, in consequence of removing from 
a neighboring State, the subscriber commenced with a new stock of 
Bees. Recently he has taken an account of expenditures and receipts 
in Bee-keeping for two years, and finds that his Bees have paid in 
honey and increase of stock six hundred and fifty- four per cent, or 
three hundred and twenty-seven per cent, per annum. This is the 
average of his entire stock, which is now somewhat extensive. Some 
swarms have paid one hundred, others three hundred, others ^ve hun- 
dred per cent, a year. Other Bee-keepers who have used this Hive 
have been equally successful. The subscriber would be glad to give 



THE PROTECTIVE BEE-HIVE. 35 

one individual who has used it $ 25.00 for the proceeds of one swarm 
during a single year. In this Hive the natural instincts of the Honey- 
bee are not obstructed or changed, but directed into a profitable chan- 
nel for the benefit of the keeper. 

PRINCIPLE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

Early in the author's experience in Bee-keeping, he discovered that 
the trouble which is occasioned by tbe Bee-moth, arises chiefly in con- 
sequence of the animal heat which naturally emanates from the Bees, 
as it escapes from the hive, or as it issues through the joints, cracks, 
and crevices, and results in the hatching of the eggs of the Bee-moth. 
Such being the fact, any remedy, to be successful, must meet the 
exigencies of the case. It must prevent the ill effects which thig 
animal heat produces. The Protective Bee-hive is constructed with 
this special object in view. In its construction, an attempt is made to 
imprison or intercept, or prevent the escape of that animal heat which 
causes the mischief; and with what success it is done, the reader (or, 
rather, the one who examines and uses the hive) must judge. 

MODE OF PROTECTION. 

Every joint which communicates directly with the interior of the 
hive is protected by a tongue and groove, or their equivalents. The 
same is true of the joint which usually exists around the base of the 
hive ; so that it is virtually a hive without joints. The animal heat 
naturally emanating from the Bees is so effectually imprisoned that the 
eggs of the Bee-moth will not hatch at any place or point about the 
exterior of the hive. This new result cannot be too highly appreciated 
in its bearing upon Bee -culture. No hive is suitable for use which has 
not this protection, or what is equivalent to it. 

MATERIALS. 

Clear stock and well seasoned should be selected. It should be dry, 
and free from shakes and cracks. The best stock is none too good, and 
will be the cheapest in the end. 

MAKING. 

In the construction of this hive, the best workmanship should be 
employed which it is possible to obtain. No part which is found in the 



36 BEE-CULTURE. 

model can be safely dispensed with. Each part is essential to its suc- 
cessful operation. The tongues in the upright joints are to be well 
coated over with white paint before the hive is put together. The 
inner surfaces of the double set of cleats, between which the movable 
slide or bottom is inserted, are to be coated over in the same manner 
before they are attached to the sides of the hive*, the object of which 
is to imprison more effectually than would otherwise be done, the 
animal heat of the Bees. The door is not to be protected in this man- 
ner, inasmuch as the joints, which it makes with the sides of the hive, 
do not communicate directly with the interior. Neither wax nor 
warmth being found in them, the Bee-moth is not prompted to deposit 
its eggs there. The nails are to be set in and puttied over, and the 
exterior of the hive is to be most thoroughly painted with white lead 
and oil, and thus prepared for exposure to the weather. It should be 
painted annually, in November or March, for three or four years ; sub- 
sequently once in two years. The zinc plates or protectors are set in 
a saw-calf. The holes in the sides of the hive for the insertion of the 
comb supporters should be bored only one half-inch deep, so as not to 
make an external opening. It is better to make one hive, which will 
answer the purpose of a hive for a century, than to half make a new 
one once in eight or ten years, which will not, even while it lasts, answer 
the purpose for which it is used. 

HIVING. 

General directions as to the mode of procedure in this operation have 
already been given. The tin slides should be in place to prevent the 
Bees from ascending into the chamber. If the hive is clean, no further 
preparation is necessary to render it fit for use. The movable slide or 
bottom is to be removed entirely from the hive, and then proceed as 
already directed, or as with a common box hive, being careful to place 
the hive in the shade, unless you wish the Bees to leave it. At night, 
when the Bees have taken possession, or are quietly clustered in a mass 
at the top of the main body of the hive, as may be seen by opening the 
door, the bottom of the hive is to be returned to its place. A rope or 
strap is now to be placed around the hive perpendicularly, and the 
hive and Bees are to be weighed. The weight of the hive having been 
previously ascertained, and placed upon the memorandum, the weight 



THE PROTECTIVE BEE-HIVE. 37 

of the Bees or swarm is now to be noted upon the memorandum also. 
The hive is now ready to be removed to its permanent stand. 

LOCATION. 

The hive is to be placed in the shade, or under the south-half of a 
tree, entirely unconnected with any building, and removed as far as 
may be from all boards, benches, planks, fences and timbers, which may 
furnish lurking-places for various insects. It is to be suspended, or 
supported by two upright posts, or their equivalents. I protest against 
any kind of bench or board; such an arrangement is not to be tolerated. 
The supports are to be four or four and a half feet in length. They 
are to be fourteen inches distant from each other, and set into the 
ground until they stand firmly. The hive is then to be placed upon 
them or the side cleats made to rest upon them. Joists two inches by 
four answer very well for this purpose, or small posts with one flat side. 
A cleat may be nailed from one to the other to prevent them from 
spreading. All this preparation or fitting of the hive to the supporters 
is to be done before the Bees swarm, so that there shall be no jarring 
of the hive when it is placed between the supports. The supports 
should set up to the hive and embrace it ; they should be smooth and 
painted like the hive, to avoid insects. The nearer they are located to 
the house the better, that they may become accustomed to the presence 
of various persons, to such an extent as not to be annoyed by them. 
In such a location they soon become domesticated, and do not annoy 
those who mav visit them. 



M 


M 


M 


H 


M 


00 


00 


00 


00 


00 


Ol 


Ot 


tfl 


Ox 


Ol 


00 


<] 


CD 


Ol 


^ 










& 










OQ 




















* 











t— I 

a 4 




















V 










Xn 




















CO 




















cr 






1 




GO 














p p 



£ 



"g- 



s 

P 

ct- 



— -s 
p Pi 



THE PROTECTIVE BEE-ITIVE. 39 



MEMORANDA. 



The object of this schedule or memorandum, which is found upon the 
inner side of the door, is two-fold. 1. To induce the negligent or care- 
less Bee-keeper to be more exact, and, as a consequence, to be more 
successful in the management of his Bees. 2. To aid the scientific 
Bee-keeper, who may be disposed to register various items, in keeping 
a connected record or history of his Bees, to which he may at any 
time refer to ascertain the results of their labors. It is of the first im- 
portance to every Bee-keeper that he should know at the approach of 
winter, or when the labors of the summer are over, what amount of 
stock or winter stores his Bees may have on hand, a thing which he can- 
not know with any degree of certainty without something which 
approaches to a systematic arrangement or procedure. He must know 
in the first place what his hive weighs, and then what his Bees weigh, and 
then make an allowance of about two pounds for the weight of the wax 
or comb before he can arrive at this knowledge ; and yet the possession 
or non-possession of it is to decide, in very many instances, the point of 
life or death in reference to his Bees. If it is ascertained in autumn, 
that his Bees are not sufficiently furnished with winter stores, the de- 
ficiency may be supplied. The requisite amount of cheap honey may 
be placed in the chamber of the hive while the weather is sufficiently 
warm to insure its transfer to the main body of the hive, a thing which 
cannot be done in severe cold weather. When Bees have failed to 
survive the winter for the want of attention to this particular, the whole 
has been resolved into " luck," M bad luck," when in fact there has 
been guilt at the door of the Bee-keeper. A Bee-keeper without 
system, and without something like a connected record, which is con- 
templated in the above schedule, is substantially in the condition of the 
shop-keeper, who, without a day book or leger, depends upon the 
fidelity of his memory in all his business transactions. The shop- 
keeper loses a dollar here and a dollar there, and the Bee-keeper loses 
five dollars here and five dollars there, because his Bees were not sup- 
plied with winter stores. Every Bee-keeper who can be induced to 
adopt a systematic arrangement in the management of his Bees, will 
find himself amply compensated for his trouble. 



40 BEE-CULTURE. 



SUMMER MANAGEMENT. 



In the case of a new swarm, the tin slides are to be kept in place, to 
prevent the Bees from ascending into the boxes, or chamber of the 
hive, until the main body of it is filled with comb. Then they may be 
withdrawn, and placed upon the top of the boxes, to allow the Bees to 
ascend into them. The Bee-keeper should be sure to keep command 
of the movable slide or bottom, and not suffer it to remain stationary or 
fixed in place for months, until it becomes extremely difficult to re- 
move it, in consequence of the wax or Bee-glue which the Bees employ 
to make it fast. It is easily moved if it is withdrawn often. It should 
be withdrawn, and cleared of wax and every other substance, once in 
ten days or two weeks, to prevent the accumulation of wax near its 
edges. The time for doing this is at night, or early in the morning, or 
after a shower, when the Bees are quiet. Whenever the slide is with- 
drawn, its edges should be scraped thoroughly with a knife, to remove 
all the wax, that it may play easily. The oftener it is withdrawn, the 
more easily it will be done, and the less the operator will annoy the 
Bees, and the less they in turn will annoy him. If at any time the 
Bees cluster upon the outside of the hive, the slide or bottom is to be 
moved forward four or six inches, and suffered to remain in that con- 
dition until sunset, when it is to be returned to its place. The conse- 
quence usually is, so great an amount of fresh air being given them, the 
Bees return speedily to the interior of the hive and resume their labors. 
If in consequence of excessive heat, they obstruct the return of the 
slide in the rear, it may remain out about one inch during the night, to 
prevent a destruction of Bees, which will be occasioned by the end of 
the slide, if it is pressed quite home to the rear of the hive. This nar- 
row opening, if it is choked with Bees, will occasion no harm. If at 
any time before the Bees are put in, or afterwards, the slide does not 
play easily, it should be removed, and a piece of sandpaper employed 
upon its edge, until it plays conveniently easy between the double set 
of cleats, or in the groove which is formed by them. Then it will be a 
pleasure to remove it when it becomes necessary, or the Bee-keeper 
chooses to do it. The boxes for the deposit of surplus honey are to be 
exchanged for empty ones as often as they are filled. One great ob- 



THE PROTECTIVE BEE-HIVE. 41 

jecfc of the apiarian, in keeping perfect command of the movable slide 
or bottom should be, to examine the condition of the comb, and to as- 
certain whether a Bee-moth has gained admission to the hive through 
the Bee-entrance. This is possible, though it is a thing of very rare 
occurrence. Their usual mode of operation is to deposit their eggs in 
the crevices and joints, and around the base of the hive. If the moth 
enters the hive, the movable slide or bottom will be found to render a 
very important service. Even in this case the Bee-keeper has a 
remedy. He can rid himself of the enemy, by removing its eggs and 
young, and he should be thankful for any arrangement which enables 
him to do it. A movable slide or bottom, which has the necessary pro- 
tection when it is in place, and can be readily removed on various oc- 
casions, and for various purposes, is no trifling affair. The longer it is 
used, the more the convenience of it will be appreciated. Its upper 
surface should be kept clean and sweet by scraping. Whenever a box 
is to be removed from the chamber of the hive, a tin slide is to be in- 
serted beneath it, to keep the Bees from ascending. Another tin slide 
is to be inserted upon the top of the first slide, to keep the Bees in the 
box. This upper tin slide for the time constitutes the bottom of the box. 
The box and upper tin slide are now to be withdrawn together, care 
being taken not to displace the lower slide, and likewise not to let a 
single Bee escape from the box. The operator should wear gloves, 
lest a Bee or two should escape. The box is now to be placed in front 
of the hive inverted, about ten or fifteen feet distant from it, and the 
tin slide removed, that the Bees may come out and return to the hive. 
The box should now be rapped with a broom-stick, to induce the Bees 
to leave it. As fast as they ascend to what is now the top of the box, 
or are found covering the comb, the brush of the broom is to be used 
in brushing them gently from the box to the ground, and they will re- 
turn to the hive. Operate in this manner until the Bees are all dis- 
placed, and the honey is yours. It will facilitate the operation to hold 
the box over the smoke of a cotton cloth, when only a part of the Bees 
have lefc it. The time for this operation is directly after sunset. A 
cool evening is preferable. In dry weather a vessel of water should 
be kept standing in the yard, to which the Bees may have access. 



42 BEE-CULTURE, 



FALL MANAGEMENT. 



Rarely do the Bees make any addition to their stores after the com- 
mencement of autumn. On the first of October, if it is not done before, 
the boxes should all be removed from the hive, whether they are filled 
with honey or not, that the chamber of the hive may remain empty or 
vacant during the remainder of the autumn and winter. If there is 
empty comb in the boxes, it should remain undisturbed, for use in the 
spring, and is to be returned to the Bees at the proper time, in the 
same condition in which it was taken from them. The hive is now to 
be set upon the ground and weighed, and the weight of stock to be 
noted upon the memorandum. One tin slide is now to be placed in 
the chamber, over the central part of the hive, in such a position as to 
close entirely the two central channels which communicate with 
the main body of the hive below, and in such a position as to leave the 
two outer channels, one on each side, open, for the purpose of allowing 
the rarefied air to ascend into the chamber, to prevent a deposition of 
moisture upon the walls of the hive in frosty weather. If the movable 
slide or bottom is thoroughly scraped or cleaned of wax and Bee-glue, 
late in autumn, as it should be, it will remain free during the cold 
season. If it is found after weighing that any hive is not furnished 
with sufficient winter stores, now is the time to supply the deficiency. 
A cheap kind of honey, which can be procured for about sixty cents 
per gallon, or six cents per pound, should be placed in a feeder, and 
put into the chamber of the hive under one of the surplus honey boxes, 
that the Bees may transfer it to their cells below, a thing which they 
never do in cold weather. They will starve before they will go into 
the chamber of the hive in severe weather. The quantity of honey 
which is needful for winter stores, varies, usually, from twelve to twenty 
pounds, according to the size of the swarm, or the number of Bees to 
be wintered. A medium sized swarm usually consumes about fifteen 
pounds. I once had a large swarm which consumed twenty-six pounds' 
in a single winter. Any swarm which has less than twenty pounds of 
honey, should be fed until they have this quantity, unless the number 
of Bees in the hive is less than usual. There is no harm in giving them 
a little more than will be consumed. It will not be lost." 



THE PROTECTIVE BEE-HIVE. 43 



WINTER MANAGEMENT. 



Very little Is to be done in reference to the Bees in winter, except 
to see that the rarefied air, or steam, which is generated in the hive, has 
an opportunity to ascend into the vacant chamber. The necessary ar- 
rangement to secure this end has been attended to in autumn. The 
hive is to be allowed to remain in the open air, occupying the same 
position as in summer. The Bees are liable to come out and fall down 
upon the snow and perish. To remedy this, coarse hay or straw should 
be spread upon the snow, in front of the hive. Whenever the weather 
moderates and the Bees are inclined to move, the movable slide or bot- 
tom should be withdrawn, and thoroughly scraped before it is re- 
turned. Nothing will be gained by removing the hive to. the attic, the 
cellar, or a dark room. I have tried all these experiments to my entire 
satisfaction. More Bees will be lost by such a transfer, than by allow- 
ing them to remain in the open air. It is an evil for the Bees to thaw 
out in winter, because in that case they come out and throw off their 
faeces, and must again be filled up with a new supply of honey taken 
from the cells. A moderate degree of cold, steadily continued, is best 
for them. If they come out often, they consume more honey than 
when they remain in a state of repose and do not void their faeces. 

SPRING MANAGEMENT. 

In March, as soon as the Bees show a disposition to move, the slide 
or bottom is to be withdrawn and the hive cleared of dead Bees, and 
thoroughly scraped, before it is returned. This will save the Bees much 
time and labor. This operation should be repeated every few days, 
during the months of April and May, partly to assist the Bees in keep- 
ing the hive clean, and partly to accustom them to this kind of officious 
interference, and to prepare them to submit to it quietly when the 
weather becomes warmer, or at any time when it becomes necessary. It 
is truly surprising to what an extent Bees may be handled, when properly 
domesticated, by a long continued course of cautious and gentle man- 
agement. Before pollen or Bee-bread can be obtained abroad, a sub- 
stitute will be found in unbolted rye meal. A dish of this in pleasant 
weather should be placed in the vicinity of the Bees, and they will 
convey it to the hive for the purpose of feeding the young. A few 



44 BEE-CULTURE. 

spoonfuls of honey should be given to the Bees, near the last of March, 
when the weather is good. This will be found to arouse them to great 
activity, and will be likely to result in early swarming. A large spoon- 
ful of honey may be placed in each of the outer channels of the cham- 
ber, and suffered to run down upon the comb. This operation may be 
performed two or three times, after an interval of about two days, or 
the honey may be placed in a feeder. On the first of April, the tin 
slides should both be put in place, and the boxes be returned to the 
chamber. The object of this arrangement is to give the Bees more 
warmth for hatching and nursing purposes. This arrangement is to 
continue until the Bees swarm. Then the tin slides are to be with- 
drawn, to allow the Bees to ascend and commence their work in the 
boxes, and to prevent them from swarming a second time, which is 
usually an evil. 

ROBBING. 

Robbing is more common in autumn than in spring, or at any other 
season. Whenever it is discovered that there is any passing of the 
Bees from one hive to another, or that they are engaged in robbing 
each other, or there is any commotion among them arising from this 
cause, the remedy is very simple. Place a small block of wood upon 
the lighting board, directly in front of the Bee-entrance, in such a 
position as to allow just space enough for one Bee to pass and repass 
to and from the hive, and you end the trouble. 



TRANSFER OF BEES. 

It becomes necessary sometimes to transfer Bees from one hive to 
another, but much more rarely than is supposed by many who advocate 
this measure. A Bee-keeper cannot entertain a more injurious idea 
than that which is sometimes advanced, viz. : that his Bees need to be 
broken up, or transferred to a new apartment, once in two, three, or 
four years ; for if he acts in accordance with this mistaken idea, and his 
Bees are thus routed, he will be sure to interrupt their labors, and 
greatly curtail his own profits. It is certain that he has not taken into 
account the expensive work of the Bees in constructing the comb 
which is abandoned. The loss which he sustains by such a transfer, is 
equivalent to the loss which a family sustains when they are burned out of 
house and home and lose their all. Such a disaster is to be submitted 



THE PROTECTIVE BEE-HIVE. 45 

to with Christian resignation, when the old mansion, in consequence of 
its leaky condition and multitudinous vermin, has become no longer 
tenantable, but not a thing to be desired so ardently as that a match 
shall be ruthfully seized for this purpose. I would say to the 
advocates of this measure, that I have seen swarms, which have 
worked well in the same comb, and prospered well, and swarmed well 
for fourteen and eighteen years in succession. Others have kept them 
in the same comb, and in a prosperous condition, for twenty-five or 
thirty years. Facts are preferable to theories. To obviate the 
necessity of a transfer, the comb should be kept in a good 
condition, by abundant ventilation in winter. The accumulation of 
moisture in the hive is to be prevented. As to the contraction of the 
cells, I would say that no perceptible difference is discovered between 
the size of the Bees reared in recent cells, and those which have been 
long in use. Besides, I have yet to learn that a small Bee is not as smart 
and active, and as great a honey gatherer, as a great, or dronish one. 
The reasons for a transfer, are : 1. The leaky condition of the hive. 
2. The bad condition of the comb. 3. The presence of the Bee-moth. 
When a transfer becomes necessary, as it may in extreme cases, and 
has been decided upon, the method which I prefer is the following : 
1. Make an opening into the top of the hive, which, for the present, is 
to be closed. 2. Invert the hive. 3. Place your new hive, into which 
the Bees are to be driven, over the mouth or inverted end of the old 
one. 4. Protect entirely the joint between them, that no Bees may 
escape. 5. Rap smartly upon every side of the old hive, with sticks 
of the size of a small cane, for several minutes, until the Bees are 
thoroughly routed, or begin to ascend into the new hive. 6. Set it into a 
large tub which shall be as deep as the old hive. 7. Open the aper- 
ture made in the top of the old hive. 8. Pour water into the tub 
gradually, for about half an hour, until it is rilled, and the Bees have 
ascended to the new hive. 9. Cut off the communication between the 
two hives, by placing a board or zinc plate between them. 10. Remove 
the new hive to the spot where the old one stood. They are now sub- 
stantially in the condition of a new swarm which has just been hived. 
This operation may be performed from the 15th to the 30th of May, 
or about ten days after the first swarm has issued, or at any time in the 
month of June, if a swarm does not issue. If transferred later than 
this, it may be doubtful whether they will gather a sufficient quantity 
of honey for their winter stores. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

OVERSTOCKING. 

Can a district of country be overstocked with Bees ? This is possi- 
ble ; yet it is a thing which is rarely, if ever done. Gross mistakes 
are often made in the decision of this question. Very few Bees, it is 
supposed by many, can be supported, or find pasturage in a given 
section of country. If ten or twenty swarms are kept in a particular 
neighborhood, it is supposed to be inexpedient to keep more, lest there 
should be a scarcity of honey for them. Light will be thrown upon this 
question, if we turn our attention to certain districts of country in which 
they are kept and successfully cultivated in much greater numbers. In 
our own country, the question has never been tested by actual experi- 
ment. In certain locations, Bees are kept in considerable numbers, but 
not to the extent of overstocking the country. The Shakers, at Lebanon, 
keep about six hundred colonies. There are quite a number of Bee- 
keepers in different sections of the country, who keep from seventy-five to 
one hundred colonies, without producing a famine among them. I might 
produce a great mass of evidence bearing on the question, all going to 
show that we are in very little danger of overstocking the country ; and 
it is my settled conviction, that if we were to multiply the present num- 
ber of colonies in the country by one hundred, we should then be far 
from reaching the extent to which Bees might be kept, and they still be 
furnished with abundant pasturage. At any one point where Bees are 
now found, one hundred colonies might be kept with perfect safety. 
In Germany, Bees are kept in much greater numbers than in this 
country, and yet it is'the universal testimony of German writers, that the 
country is not overstocked, and most of them do not believe such a 
thing is possible. One writer says : " I have numerous accounts of 
apiaries in pretty close proximity, containing from two hundred to five 
hundred colonies each. Ehrenfels had one thousand hives, at three 
separate establishments, indeed, but so close to each other, that he 
could visit them all in half an hour's ride." He adds, " in Russia and 
Hungary, apiaries numbering from two thousand to five thousand 
colonies are said not to be unfrequent, and we know that as many as 



PROFITS. 47 

one thousand Lives are often congregated in autumn at one point in the 
heaths of Germany." It is common to find in different part3 of Ger- 
many, from twenty-five to five hundred colonies collected at a single 
point. In Lunenburg, a province in Hanover, it is estimated that there 
are found about 600,000 hives, making 141 colonies to every square 
mile ; and yet it is maintained by German writers, that an overstocking 
of the country is out of the question. " Whatever might be supposed 
possible as an extreme case, it was certain, as it regards the Kingdom 
of Hanover, it could not be even remotely apprehended, that too many 
apiaries would ever be established, and that consequently the greatest 
possible multiplication of colonies might safely be aimed at and 
encouraged." When we, in a country as fertile and abundant in 
honey-bearing flowers as Germany, shall have apiaries containing hun- 
dreds, and even many thousands, it will do for us to begin to talk about 
overstocking the country, better than at present 



CHAPTER XV. 

PROFITS. 

Bee-keeping has been considered profitable in some instances 
where one-half the stock has been destroyed, (" brimstoned,") in order 
to get possession of the honey. It will be doubly so if all the Bees are 
kept alive, and are profitably employed. In some instances, they have 
been tortured or compelled to work in ways and in circumstances 
so much at variance with their stereotyped habits, that the profits, 
otherwise resulting from their labors, have been greatly diminished. 
In Germany, Bee-keepers are accustomed to increase their profits by 
a multiplication of colonies, instead of managing a few in the best 
manner. In 1801, Ehrenfels had 1000 hives, and received a net 
yield of $2 per hive. It is alleged, that " the Bees of Lunenburg pay 
all the taxes assessed upon their proprietors, and leave a surplus 
besides." I would here refer to Mr. Dzierzon's success, as stated in the 
Westminster Review, for October, 1852. "In 1835 he commenced 
Bee-keeping, in the common way, with twelve colonies, and after 
various mishaps, which taught him the defects of the common hives, 
and the old mode of management, his stock was so reduced that in 



48 BEE-CULTURE. 

1838 he had virtually to begin anew. At thi3 period, he contrived 
his improved hive in its ruder form, which gave him the command over 
all the combs, and he began to experiment on the theory which obser- 
vation and study had enabled him to devjse. Thenceforward his 
progress was as rapid as his success was complete and triumphant. 
Though he met with frequent reverses — about seventy colonies having 
been stolen from him, sixty destroyed by fire, and twenty-four by a 
flood — yet in 1846 his stock had increased to 360 colonies, and he 
realized from them that year six thousand pounds of honey, besides 
several hundred weight of wax. At the same time, most of the culti- 
vators in his vicinity, who pursued the common methods, had fewer 
hives than they had when he commenced. 

"In the year 1848, a fatal pestilence, known by the name of 'foul 
brood/ prevailed among his Bees, and destroyed nearly all his colonies 
before it could be subdued, only about ten having escaped the malady, 
which attacked alike the old stocks and his artificial swarms. He 
estimates his entire loss that year at over 500 colonies. Never- 
theless he succeeded so well in multiplying by artificial swarms 
the few that remained healthy, that in the fall of 1851 his stock con- 
sisted of nearly 400 colonies. He must, therefore, have multiplied his 
stocks more than three-fold each year." A further account of his 
operations is found in a German report on agriculture for 1846. " Mr. 
Dzierzon resides in a poor, sandy district of Middle Silesia, which, 
according to the common notions of apiarians, is unfavorable to Bee- 
culture. Yet in despite of this, and of various mishaps, he has 
succeeded in realizing $900 as the product of his Bees in one season. 

By his mode of management, his Bees yield, even in the poorest 
years, from ten to fifteen per cent, on the capital invested; and 
where the colonies are produced by the apiarian's own skill and labor, 
they cost only about one-fourth the price at which they are usually 
valued. In ordinary seasons, the profit amounts to from thirty to 
fifty per cent, and in very favorable seasons, from eighty to 100 per 
cent." 

Mr. James Nokes, of Washington, D. C, has one swarm which pro- 
duced a new one, valued at $5.00. This new one produced, besides 
furnishing their own winter stores, 89 lbs. of surplus honey, which was 
sold in the market for $20.00. The old swarm produced surplus honey 
to the value of $5.00. Total proceeds of the old stock for the season, 



CLAIMS. 49 

$30.00. A gentleman in this town, who has used the Protective Bee 
Hive, has realized from one colony, in honey and increase of stock, 
the value of $ 25. 00 in a single year. It is a good business, which pays, 
over and above all its necessary expenses, a net profit of 100 per cent, 
per annum upon the investment. Bees do more than this when 
properly managed. I have three swarms, which have paid me in 
honey and increase of stock, upwards of $100 in two years. The 
average profit upon my entire stock for three years has been 327 per 
cent, per annum, or S3. 2 7 cents has been the annual profit on every 
doll&r invested. It is strictly true that there is no living creature, 
which is subject to the control of man, which pays so large a per cent- 
age of profit upon the capital invested as the Honey-Bee, when a 
proper mode of culture is adopted. A Bee-keeper, with a judicious 
system of management, may expect to receive a profit upon his invest- 
ment, varying from 100 to 500 per cent, per annum. Such, at least, 
has been my experience, or receipt of profits, for several successive 
years, while others within the circle of my knowledge have done even 
better than this. 



CHAPTER XVI. 



CLAIMS. 



Bee- culture is an enterprise which has claims peculiar to itself. 
It is recommended to our attention by considerations which can appro- 
priately be urged, relative to few, if any, other enterprises. It is both 
interesting and profitable, and when properly conducted, is conducive 
to mental and moral improvement. There is so much which is truly 
wonderful in the instincts and stereotype habits of the Honey-Bee, 
that the most stupid can hardly fail to be attracted by their curious 
economy, when their work or mode of procedure is brought distinctly 
to view, as may be done at any time by the use of an observatory hive. 
The inquisitive, the curious, the philosophical, and the refined, are, as 
a matter of course, most deeply interested in their operations. There 
is too much true philosophy, and too much scientific accuracy in their 
work, to allow it to pass unnoticed and unadmired. The fact that their 
work pays a larger per centage of profit on the capital invested than 



50 BEE-CULTURE. 

any other is no slight commendation, especially to those who wish to 
be paid for their pains, or wish to combine interest with profit. Those 
who engage in Bee-culture with a view to understand it, must study 
and think much, and this is conducive to mental improvement. It 
is an enterprise in which it is scarcely possible to engage without 
discovering the wisdom of the Infinite One, and by those reflections 
which naturally arise in the mind of the attentive observer, the heart, 
almost as a matter of course, is made better. He finds 

" Sermons in { Bees,' and c God ' in everything." 
Bee-culture has claims upon the intelligent and scientific. Profes- 
sional men should study the instincts and wonderful economy of the 
Honey-Bee, that they may be able to throw light upon their operations, 
and thus aid their less intelligent neighbors. It has claims upon the 
sturdy yeoman as a kind of pastime, by means of which he can reap ample 
profits with very little expenditure of time and capital. It has claims 
upon the young as a means of extending their knowledge of natural 
history, and cultivating within them the love of natural objects. It has 
claims upon the aged, who, as they retire from the 'active and busy 
scenes of life, need just such objects of contemplation to occupy their 

minds. It has claims also upon the attention of females. Mrs. B , 

of New Jersey, by her careful observations and economical manage- 
ment, and valuable writings relative to the operations of the Honey- 
Bee, secured to herself a livelihood, an education to her children, 
and gained much celebrity as a scientific writer. Females are among 
our very best apiarians. When the principle of domestication, which 
is found to exist in the Honey-Bee, is properly understood, they will be 
kept on a much larger scale than at present. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

RECAPITULATION. 

The author of this volume has not advanced the many Utopian 
schemes which have been advocated within the last twenty years, rela- 
tive to Bee-culture. He believes that very many of them which have 
already proved abortive, have done much to retard progress in this most 



RECAPITULATION. 51 

interesting and profitable branch of rural industry. Bee-keepers, who 
have been led to adopt these, having suffered much in a pecuniary point 
of view, by repeated failures, have become disheartened, and are now 
hesitating, whether to return to the former method, one leading feature 
of which is the annual destruction (by fire and brimstone) of about one 
half of their stock, or to abandon the enterprise altogether. Of this, 
they have become fully convinced, that artificial swarming, non-swarm- 
ing, liberal feeding, Bee-palaces and the like, are not what they are 
represented (" cracked up ") to be. They are satisfied that every 
change in Bee-culture is not an improvement. They have been led 
to inquire (cui bono), What good is to result from such multitudinous 
and complicated " fixings ?" The inquiring state of mind which is thus 
generated, will be productive of good. The method which is advocated 
in this volume, is fitted to lead them back to a system of culture which 
is characterized by great simplicity ; and when, in accordance with the 
views which are here presented, they shall be led to construct a hive 
which will be exposed to the weather without injury to the Bees, — 
one in which they will be secure from the encroachments of the Bee- 
moth, — one in which they may work advantageously and profitably, — 
one from which they shall be permitted to swarm naturally — in other 
words, one in which full scope shall be given to their natural instincts, 
without officious interruption, or unnecessary meddling, on the part of 
the keeper, — they will find that it is an enterprise which amply remu- 
nerates them for their trouble, and they will be encouraged to go for- 
ward in it. A single hive, properly managed, with an opportunity to 
examine fully the work of the Bees, gives better satisfaction to the 
keeper, than a dozen swarms which are managed badly. In this case, 
it is an intelligent business which pays well, and thus cannot but give 
satisfaction. Those who shall be induced to use the Protective Bee- 
Hive, should be particular to use it in the manner which has been 
pointed out, and to observe strictly the directions which have been given. 
Success depends upon attention to little things. None of these have been 
named to make a book, but because they were necessary ; and none of 
them are too small to receive the attention which is required. The in- 
ventor is anxious that each individual should be as successful in the use 
of the hive as he is. This cannot be expected unless it is used as he 
uses it, or according to the directions which are given. If an individual 
shall place this hive upon a bench, or in a Bee-house, I prefer that he 



52 BEE-CULTURE. 

should not use it. If he fails to keep command of the movable slide or 
bottom, my preference is the same. The individual who does this, in 
the face of the explicit and needful directions which are given, deserves 
not to succeed, and probably will not succeed, whatever plan he may 
adopt. The hive should be placed substantially in the circumstances 
which have been contemplated, and be managed in the same manner, 
substantially, which has been pointed out, in spring, summer, autumn, 
and winter. The essential features of successful Bee-culture are the 
following. 1. Bees should be placed in a good hive, one which will 
bear exposure to the weather. 2. The keeper should be able at any 
time to inspect their condition. 3. They should be allowed to swarm. 

4. They should be protected from the encroachments of the Bee-moth. 

5. The hive should be sufficiently ventilated, especially in winter. 

6. No Bees should ever be destroyed. 7. The keeper should be able 
to avail himself of all the labor which they can perform. 8. He should 
ascertain, and note their weight of stock in autumn and spring. 9. Bees 
which occupy a good hive, (and they should be put into no other) should 
rarely be dislodged. These are by no means all the important features 
of a good system of Bee-culture. But these I regard as indispensable ; 
others are comparatively of minor importance, or incidental. Without 
each of these, any system which may be adopted, must present glaring 
defects, and must prove unprofitable, in proportion as such defects are 
found to exist. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

CONCLUSION. 

The Bee-keeper is concerned in the management of a most wonder- 
ful insect. The wisdom of the Creator is conspicuous in the instincts 
which are stamped upon it. Here is a profitable theme of study, not 
merely for the naturalist, but for the moralist and the divine. Their 
industry is proverbial. On this account, it may be well for the dron- 
ish portion of our race to witness their operations, and learn from them 
salutary lessons. They occupy a field of labor, which, were it not for 



CONCLUSION. 53 

them, would yield us no sweets. No other creature which is subject to 
the control of man, can be employed in their place. Honey is a thing 
which must be unknown as an article of luxury and commerce, but for 
them. It is an article, which, if it is not gathered at the proper season, 
is lost. It does not even mingle with the soil to enrich it, inasmuch as 
dried blossoms do not contain it. It is lost by evaporation. Hence, upon 
economical principles, we have a motive for putting them into the field. 
Bees live in the most perfect domestic harmony, among themselves. 
So far as we know, no civil feuds ever arise among them. I speak of 
separate colonies, when not annoyed by their neighbors. Although 
furnished with a formidable weapon of defence, they never employ it 
upon the inmates of their own habitation. Were they induced to do 
it, a civil war must be one of extermination. All their difficulties, if 
they have any, are settled upon pacific, instead of warlike principles. 



QUESTIONS FOE THE BEE-KEEPER. 

Have I located my hive in the shade, as directed ? 

Have I noted the iveight of my Rive, upon the memorandum, before 
placing the Bees in it ? 

Have I placed upon the memorandum the weight of the swarm? 

Have I kept the tin slides in place until the main body of the hive 
was filled with comb ? 

Have I kept command of the movable slide or bottom, as directed ? 

Have I noted the weight of stock, and the amount of honey con- 
sumed ? 

Have I vacated the chamber of the hive, and arranged the tin slides 
in autumn, as directed ? 

Have I returned the boxes to the chamber of the hive in the spring ? 
Have I placed my Bees near the house, or in favorable circumstances 
to become domesticated ? 



TESTIMONIALS. 

Dr. Eddy — Dear Sir : I am free to express my opinion of your 
" Protective Bee-hive." The principle upon which you have proceeded 
in its construction, (that of non-intercourse) in reference to the Bee- 
moth, I regard as correct. I do not see how it is possible that my Bees 
should ever be injured by the moth so long as I continue to use your 
hives. 

J. W. P. JENKS, A. M., 

Middieborough. Principal of Pierce Academy. 



Drt. Eddy — Dear Sir : I take great pleasure in recommending 
to those who are engaged in the culture of Bees, the Hive which you 
have constructed, with a view to protect the Bees from the encroach- 
ments of the Bee-moth. I prefer this Hive, decidedly, to any other 
which I have ever seen. I have used and examined various kinds of 
patent Hives in years past, but I know of no one pattern which protects 
the Bees effectually, as I think yours must, from the Bee-moth. Could 
this Plive be introduced into general use, I feel assured that it would 
constitute a new and profitable era in the history of Bee-culture. 

J. B. FREEMAN. 

North Bridgewater. 



Plymouth Co. Fair. — Dr. Eddy had on exhibition a Hive of Bees 
in operation. His Hive was constructed on a very neat and simple 
plan of his own, in such a manner as to effectually prevent, we should 
think, the inroads of that unwelcome and destructive intruder, the Bee- 
moth. — Boston Journal. 



Dr. Eddy, of this place, prides himself in possessing improved Bee- 
Hives, so constructed as to effectually protect the Honey Bee from the 
destructive Bee-moth. The peculiar advantages of this kind of Hive 
have been pointed out to us, and we should judge it to be all that it is 
represented. Those who have tried it seem to like it. — N. B. Gazette. 



56 BEE-CULTURE. 

Dr. Eddy — Dear Sir : I am highly pleased -with your " Protec- 
tive Bee-hive. I think it is what it claims to be — protection against 
the Bee-moth. At least I have never seen any kind of hive so good for 
this purpose. I say this after being engaged somewhat extensively in 
the culture of Bees for about forty years, during which time I have 
used and examined a great variety of patent Hives. I wish you suc- 
cess in introducing it into general use. 

SIMEON GREEN. 

Mansfield. 



Plymouth Co. Fair. — Dr. Henry Eddy, of North Bridgewater, 
exhibited a Hive of Bees at work in one of his " Protective Bee-hives." 
This hive seems to be, and is considered, by good judges, an effectual 
protection against the Bee-moth. It is very simple, and cheap also, in 
its construction. We understand the doctor has a great demand for 
his Hives. — Traveller. 



Mechanics' Fair at Faneuil Hall. — The Protective Bee- 
Hive. — This is one of the late contributions at the fair, made by 
Henry Eddy, M. D., of North Bridgewater, by which not only the 
model of the Hive is exhibited, but the Bees are there at work. The 
peculiarity of this Hive is, that it effectually intercepts, or cuts off the 
animal heat of the Bees, by which, in ordinary Hives, the eggs of the 
Bee-moth are hatched. It is very simple in its construction, and has been 
so far tested, as to prove that it can be relied on as a perfect protec- 
tion against the moth, which usually is so great a pillager in ordinary 
Hives. It has been examined and highly approved by Dr. J. V. C. 
Smith, of this city, who has given much attention to the culture and 
management of Bees. — lb. 



Dr. Henry Eddy, of North Bridgewater, exhibited a Hive of Bees, 
with the honey, together with a sample Hive. The Committee con- 
sider this the best model for a hive they have ever noticed. — Bristol 
Co. Ag. Report. 



TESTIMONIALS. 57 

Dr. Eddy — Dear Sir : Your " Protective Bee-hive " must greatly 
increase the profits of Bee-keeping. The protection which it affords 
against the encroachments of the Bee-moth, renders it a hive of very 
great value. 

The principle of exclusion upon which you have proceeded in its 
construction, I regard as the only correct one, and it is admirably car- 
ried out. The animal heat naturally emanating from the Bees, and by 
which the eggs of the Bee-moth are hatched, is so effectually intercepted 
or cut off, that I do not see how it is possible that these eggs should be 
hatched, when deposited about your Hive. In other respects it is well 
adapted to Bee-culture. I regard it as superior to any other Hive with 
which I am acquainted. J. V. C. SMITH. 

Boston. 



Dr. Smith has long been a scientific and accurate observer of the 
habits and economy of the honey-Bee. He is the author of a valuable 
Treatise on Bee-culture. His researches on this subject have been 
extensive, both in this and foreign countries. On this account he is 
preeminently qualified to judge of the matter upon which he has 
spoken above. I value his opinion more highly than that of any other 
man whom I could name. H. E. 



Dr. Eddy — Sir: Your Protective Bee-Hive gives entire satisfac- 
tion. I like it, 

1. Because it furnishes such complete protection against the encroach- 
ments of the Bee-moth. 

2. Because it is easily ventilated in summer and winter. 

3. Because I can receive surplus honey without a destruction of 
my Bees. 

4. Because I can readily inspect the work and condition of my Bees 
without annoyance to them, or danger to myself. 

5. Because it is a Hive of such great durability. 

6. Because I can prevent my Bees from clustering upon the outside 
of the Hive. 

7. Because I can feed my Bees without inviting robbers to the Hive. 

8. Because, by furnishing ample room to my Bees, I can prevent 
them from swarming. 



58 BEE-CULTURE. 

9, Because it is easily cleared of dead Bees, and every other offend- 
ing substance. 

These, and many other valuable characteristics, pertain to the Hive 
which you have constructed. I hope other Bee-keepers will avail 
themselves of its advantages, as I have done. I think it is the cheapest 
and best Hive which they can procure. 

LYMAN E. COBB. 



We, having used the Protective Bee-hive, cheerfully concur in the 
opinions expressed above relative to it by L. E. Cobb. 

CALVIN WILLIAMS, West Bridgewater, 
D. H. COBB, North Bridgewater, 
ISAAC BOBBINS, Abington, 
SULLIVAN HAYWARD, Mansfield. 



The leading peculiarity of this Hive is the Protection which it 
affords against the encroachments of the Bee-moth. Your committee 
are of opinion that it affords the protection claimed by its inventor. — 
Plymouth Co, Ag. Report. 

PREMIUMS AWARDED. 

A Premium was awarded to this Hive at the Mechanics' Fair held in 
Eaneuil and Quincy Halls, Sept., 1853. Four different models of Bee- 
Hives were exhibited. Among these were, one by J. H. Dennis, Bos- 
ton, — the Platform Bee-Hive, by S.. Davis, Claremont, N. H., — and 
the Section Bee-Hive, by John Dillingham, Turner, Me. The only 
premium given was awarded to the "Protective Bee-Hive." It is 
proper here to state that two of the gentlemen out of three who were 
the Judges, are known to be practical Bee-keepers, and are therefore 
qualified to be judges in the case. A premium also was awarded to 
this Hive at the Plymouth County Agricultural Fair, held at Bridge - 
water in 1853. 



ADVERTISEMENT. 

This Hive combines a greater number of valuable characteristics than any other which 
has hitherto been offered to the public. With the protection -which it affords against the 
encroachments of the Bee-moth, and the provision which is made for the deposit and recep- 
tion of surplus honey, Bees are managed to the greatest possible advantage. By this ar- 
rangement they are all kept alive and kept at work, and their propensity to increase and 
to labor furnishes a profit which ought to satisfy the acquisitiveness of any Bee-keeper. 
That system of culture which gives to the Bees the greatest degree of prosperity, and fur- 
nishes at the same time the greatest profit to the keeper, is the best. I am fully satisfied, 
from many years' experience in Bee-keeping, that any farmer may pay his entire taxes 
(varying from $50 to $100 per annum) from the net profit of his bees, and with less trouble 
than he can keep one dozen fowls. 

For simplicity of construction, facility of management, and profits resulting from its use, 
this Hive stands unrivalled. It receives the unqualified approbation of every Bee-keeper 
who uses it. Arrangements are about to be made for the manufacture and sale of Hives in 
different parts of the United States. 

At present, Hives may be procured of the subscriber or his agents. 

Price per Hive, $4.00. 
Individuals forwarding this amount to the subscriber or his agents, will receive in return 
a Hive ready, for use. 

AGENTS. 

I. RADCLIFF & SON, Washington, D. C. 
J. T. CREIGHTON & CO., Alexandria, Ya. 
E. WHITMAN & CO., Baltimore, Md. 
PASCHAL MORRIS & CO., Philadelphia, Pa. 
LONGETT & GRIFFING, New York, N. Y. 
NOURSE, RUGGLES & MASON, Boston, Mass. 
PROUTY & MEARS, " u 

BRECK & SON, " '< 

The subscriber's Manual on Bee-culture will be sent with the Hive or by mail, as directed. 
It should be in the hands of every individual who uses the Protective Bee-hive. 
Price 25 cents, (or 8 letter stamps.) 



PATENT PENDING. 

To those who shall hereafter purchase rights, there will be a reduction of one dollar on 
the hive. 

Individual Rights, $5.00. 
Hive and Right, $8.00. 

It will be seen in the preface that the subscriber is in the habit of lecturing before various 
Associations, on "Bees and Bee-culture." There is nothing within the whole range of 
Natural History more interesting to a miscellaneous audience than the peculiar operations 
of the Honey Bee. 

The lecturer illustrates the subject by ample drawings, specimens of comb, &c, &c, in 
connection with a swarm of Bees (which have been domesticated) in full and successful 
operation. Those Literary Associations in different parts of the country which wish for 
his services in this line will address 

HENRY EDDY, M. D., 

North Bridgewater, Mass. 



\ 

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 
II 



002 841 717 2 



LECTURES. 

Dr. Eddy, of Massachusetts, lectured to a very gratified audience at 
the Smithsonian Institute, during the session of the U. S. Agricultural So- 
ciety, on " Bses and Bee-culture." He handles his highly interesting 
subject well, shedding much light indeed upon it. His lecture is cal- 
culated to edify and improve others than agriculturalists. — Washington 
Evening Star. 



AGRICULTURAL ASSOCIATION. 

FraminghaM, March 13, 1854. 

After listening to a Lecture by Dr. Henry Eddy, of N. Bridgewater, 
on " Bees and Bee-culture," 

Voted, — That the thanks of the Association be tendered to the Lec- 
turer, for his instructive and interesting address. Also, in addition, it 
was 

Resolved, — That we regard the Lecture of Dr. Eddy, on Bees and 
Bee-culture, well adapted to interest the audiences which usually at- 
tend our Lyceums and Literary Societies, as well as our Agricultural 
Associations. 

A true copy of Record. 

Attest, 

J. II. TEMPLE, 

Secretary. 
To. Dr. Henry Eddy. 



